Dutch telco CDS leaps on private equity rumours
An iTraxx Europe constituent has surged wider in five-year CDS amid reports of a buy-out approach

Hermes seeks ESG alpha in companies making changes
Buy-side demand to tick boxes for ESG standards has fuelled a boom in green and social impact bonds that is extending into high yield issuance. But as investment opportunities mount, so does soul-searching about the next phase

Options investors look to medium-term market normalisation
Credit index options trading has been heating up, with investors looking to take views on future market volatility well beyond the customary three-month horizon as Europe and the US grapple to keep a lid on rates.

Credit Suisse bears brunt of left-field hit to financials
Financials trading in March served as a reminder that mishaps can hit an investment portfolio from the unlikeliest of directions — and in the calmest of markets

Single names make big gains as indices dither
Single name CDS in the US and Europe have strongly outperformed from the start of the week, rallying sharply and across most of the credit universe despite direcctionless trading for indices

No sign of caution as single names pick up rally into long weekend
Credit has extended its impressive rally into the long weekend, with single names playing catch up with indices amid economic recovery signals and on the back of US president Joe Biden unveiling a $2 trillion infrastructure plan

Corp hybrid popularity mounts, but strategist outlooks diverge
Corporate hybrid bonds are becoming a focal point for investors in the second quarter, with one bank's credit strategy team making them a top pick to trade spread compression while another's has expressed caution on their likely performance

Banks take big hit as investment firm's fire sale rages
Banks exposed to embattled investment firm Archegos Capital are blowing out wider in credit markets today as their stock prices slump

TRS goes electronic on Tradeweb with iBoxx trade
Tradeweb Markets has completed what it says is the first ever fully standardised total return swap trade based on IHS Markit’s iBoxx US Dollar Liquid High Grade index

Roll pushes indices wider but fair value trumps technical positioning
Several CDS indices rolled into new series on Monday, with all of them adding spread over the outgoing versions due to added duration as well as composition changes

Yield rise is buying signal for bonds, says BNP Paribas
Credit spreads are set to hit new cyclical tights in the coming months, with the recent rise in yields having offered an attractive entry point especially for high-rated bonds, say BNP Paribas credit strategists

ESG basket grows and rising stars take focus in CDS index roll changes
Expansion of the ESG investing universe is a prominent feature of this month's roll of iTraxx and CDX indices into new series. Improved credit performance of high yield companies is also a focus, with several moving up into investment grade portfolios

Brazil upheaval sends EM spreads to new wides
Emerging market credit spreads are reaching new wides, with Brazil holding focus in the sell off amid a spike of covid 19 cases and deaths well beyond the country’s previous peak. Elsewhere credit is in a stable range but underperforming a more buoyant turn in other asset classes

Tabula makes series of hires for active credit fund launch
A new arm of independent investment manager and fixed income ETF provider Tabula Investment Management has made four hires as it looks to launch actively managed credit strategies with a systematic approach

Captor builds CDS use-case as it launches smart beta strategy
Stockholm-based Captor Fund Management is readying a fund that will aim to beat cash bond benchmarks by investing in CDS indices, adding to signs of broader appetite for the asset class

Broad sell off resumes as government yields head north
Caution is returning at the end of a stronger week for credit, as government bond yields resume their push higher. Asian and European markets followed the US lead from Wednesday with ubiquitous widening of spreads across indices and single names

Resurgent CSO market bets on ESG and new equity
After a challenging 2020 the synthetic bespoke market has begun this year in style, with a pipeline of deals, talk of new investors and hopes that ESG could play a key role in driving deal volumes

Tale of two leaders as Brazil and Italy go separate ways
The intervention of governments has been a prominent factor in financial market performance during the coronavirus pandemic. But Italy and Brazil have provided stark examples of how individual leaders can drive credit performance sharply in opposite directions

It's all relative: CLOs march tighter as macro traders open positive CDS skews
Credit default swaps are back near where they started the year after giving up their early-February gains amid a rise in government bonds. CDS curves steepened over the past month and macro hedging has left indices trading with positive skews. But CLOs paint a calmer picture in which spreads have inched tighter  

Renewed energy boosts credit as relief rally resumes
Energy companies are performing well and credit indices have resumed their push tighter after a strong surge inwards Monday, outpacing moves in other parts of the financial market

Credit makes strong gains in relief rally
The week has opened on a stronger tone amid a calming of government bond yields, conducive manufacturing data in Europe and a new covid-19 vaccine approval in the US

US and European gov yield rise spooks credit market
Credit markets took a decisive shift wider on Thursday, as rising US and European government bond yields rattled investors despite the European Central Bank signalling it will take a flexible approach to bonds to prevent fiscal tightening

February credit gains wiped out as inflation fears rise
A successive move wider in spreads on Tuesday is taking credit back to start of February levels, as investors try to weigh inflation concerns and a US tech stock rout against reopening economies and advancing commodity prices

Rates moves points to credit improvement, say BofA strategists
Focus on the rates market and the future direction of central banks has brought jitters back to credit in recent weeks and had a chilling affect on bond total returns. But higher government yields could end up being good for credit, say Bank of America strategists

Italian banks widen sharply as risk-on drive falters
Italian banks are among Wednesday's underperformers as single name credits play catch up with a shift wider in indices, amid signs the recent bull run is petering out